Aachi and Ssipak (2006) * Weird & Wacky *

Poo-lovin' Awesome

Genre: Action Sci-Fi Crime Comedy Animé (South Korea)

Starring: Chang Jung Lim; Seung-wan Ryoo

Directed By: Jo Beom-jin

Overview: In the future, all sources of energy have been depleted but one: feces. In an effort to inspire humans to produce more energy, the government rewards them with addictive 'Juicy Bars'. Junkies and mutant gangs alike are consumed with acquiring this precious commodity. We follow Aachi and SSipak, two black marketeers, as they work their way up the criminal ladder, all with the help of Beautiful, a lady able to obtain copious amounts of 'Juicy Bars'.  Between them, the 'Diaper Gang' and the police force's star cyborg cop, it's bound to be a bumpy ride.

For a plot consumed in crap, the premise is logistically one of the weakest one could imagine. You may instinctively resist mutants, toilet humour and ultra-phalic 'Juicy Bars', but a completely ridiculous premise is what helps make 'fun' an understatement in describing this little known South Korean production (which has recently been purchased by MTV to be released as an animated series).

Forget the frequent use of gorgeous backgrounds rendered in 3D, forget the original vehicles and freaky blue mutants, forget the gory, hilarious action-hero scenes like the one below, because as 'really great' recomendations like this one go, these aren't the things that truly set a film apart and make people go out of their way to look for this.

What made this truly spectacular were the following examples of outright theft of film pop culture: we open with a siege on an armoured transport à la Mad Max trilogy. Later, key moments from Misery and Aliens are re-enacted by a hypnotised character, a drug deal gone wrong turns into True Romance, with three groups shooting at each other in a hotel room, feathers flying around and all. The minecart chase scene is a carbon copy of the same scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Sadly I was unable to find a comprehensive list of all the references, but other tributary moments, be they as simple as a barren setting taken from the climax of Se7en, bike fights with light streaks lifted from Akira, shootouts with bullet-time slow-motion sequences from The Matrix, or a quote, a flashback and a spiked middle finger from Robocop, half way through this film it turned into a game of 'how many can you get?' The Untouchables, The Mask, Pulp Fiction, Basic Instinct ... Dare I go so far as to acknowledge the Odessa Staircase scene from Battleship Potemkin?

What I love most about this film is how at its core the story is unique.  The theft is not without imagination. The characters are not copies, the dystopian world is an original concept, and rather than deriding the film for what it takes, the sheer volume of what's borrowed helps draw you into the culture it mocks and embraces at the same time, reminding us that ultimately, the insane world we're watching is a universe made by Hollywood.  Who knew a movie about poo could be so... RICH...

Ewwww!

Did I mention the cyborg on Smurf violence?

Overall Rating: 84% (HOLY CRAP!)

Aftertaste:

Some of the best movie experiences are films that you never heard about, didn't have to wait for and are just put on for your pleasure with smiling, to- the-door service.  'No work' wicked film experiences like this one are what make friends valuable commodities.  It's like having employees scouring the Earth for quality stuff you might enjoy.  It's nice knowing there's other people out there, saving you the trouble of panning for treasure. 

Good times!